Here’s one way to do something useful with one of the planet’s most common forms of litter: put cigarette butts into bricks.
More than 6 trillion cigarette butts are tossed each year, making them the most common form of litter in the world. Because they contain plastic, nicotine, tar and heavy metals, they pose a public health risk and an environmental hazard.
Researchers have developed a method to recycle discarded cigarette butts by adding them to clay-fired bricks. The approach diverts heavy metals away from soil and water while repurposing waste.
By adding about 1 percent cigarette butt material to the brick mixture, the bricks maintain structural integrity and use less energy during production.
“Firing butts into bricks is a reliable and practical way to deal with this terrible environmental problem, while at the same time cutting brickmaking production costs,” said Abbas Mohajerani, lead researcher and associate professor at the Royal Melbourne Institute of Technology.
The lower energy use cuts energy consumption in brick kilns by 10 percent. The lighter bricks also provide better insulation, resulting in lower energy costs for the home.
The researchers said widespread use of the method could significantly reduce global pollution and help make construction more sustainable.
“My dream is a dedicated brickmaking recycling facility in every country that can recycle butts and solve this pollution problem for good,” Mohajerani said.
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